M/M (Paris)

"L'aM/Musette", is a contraction between two French words, "la musette", "l'amusement" and one acronym "M/M" that stands for Michaël and Mathias. For those who know us but do not speak French, "la musette" is a typical cyclist bag which swings around the shoulders, and "l'amusement" means amusement. At the end of the day, "l'aM/Musette" is a neologism that sounds good both in French and English and that translates with accuracy our vision of the "Tour deux Frances", a three weeks amusing promenade for two "agents" (the two graphic stylised characters), on a tandem, on a yellow bag, swinging on the back of a cyclist who will travel in July 2014 across England and France dreaming of wearing a yellow jersey top on the Champs Élysées.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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Design Project

The phrase is taken from The Guinness Guide to Bicycling written by J. Durry (1976) and references the preparation of riders rations before departure of each Tour stage. Typographic inspiration is from French graphic designer Jean Widmer's work for La Biennale de Paris.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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Rapha

'Ey up, it's been 20 years since Le Tour passed through these shores for the first time. They never made it north of London, but they've realised their mistake and are doing it properly this go round. Don't ocker, put down your brew and get on the roadside.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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Commission

"Ther'll be trouble up t'hill if tha gets stuck on Ilka Moor baht'at"

Musette format

Same design both sides

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Assembly

The design takes inspiration from cycling iconography. We've highlighted the form and individuality that different handlebars have, and reappropriated them into abstract patterns. Seeing the objects like this, each set takes on its own distinctive character.

Musette format

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Supermundane

My design is a semi-abstraction of a bicycle wheel. I wanted to get across some of the speed and energy required by the athletes involved in the Tour by using line and patterns instead of more explicit cycling imagery.

Musette format

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I Love Dust

We wanted to create something that spoke of cycling whilst uniquely rooted in Yorkshire. We decided to take on the county’s rose symbol and that wonderful Yorkshire pronouncement... God’s Own Country. All created from chain links, neatly set in the quintessential English cross stitch aesthetic.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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Intercity

Ce Qui Est Dans La Musette Intercity have strong ties to the city of Plymouth, which just so happens to be the location of the Tour de France’s first ever visit to the UK back in 1974. With this in mind, Intercity thought it would be interesting to take a look at the average contents of a typical musette from that year compared to the average contents of a modern day musette.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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StudioMakgill

On July 2 1958 Brian Robinson from Yorkshire was the first Briton to win a Tour stage. So what was the fuel that helped these early cycling pioneers reach the finish? It turns out the musettes were filled with a quarter chicken, ten prunes and ten sugar lumps. To wash it all down, wine was given out by the side of the road. An unusual selection in light of today’s knowledge of nutrition.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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Milltag

Inspired by sponsored Tour musettes from the 1950s, here's who would have been a likely sponsor 100 years ago (as shown in the photograph) – the 'energy drink' de rigueur: Vin de Coca. "For body and brain. Nourishes fortifies refreshes. Strengthens entire system; most agreeable. Effective and lasting renovator of vital forces." Not surprising, it contained cocaine.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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Neil Stevens

My love of the Tour de France has always been one of nostalgia. There are so many elements that make the Tour the most anticipated cycling event in the calendar. So with this in mind I combined nostalgia with the numerous parts of the whole race into a classic model kit.

Musette format

Two-sided design

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Irving & Co with John Broadley

For this challenge Julian Roberts took to the role of 'Directeurs Sportifs' and teamed up with long-term collaborator, the esteemed illustrator, John Broadley (himself a son of Huddersfield). The outcome celebrates the Yorkshire-born cycling legend Fred Crowther, aka 'The Whippet'. The humble son of Dodthwaite pie-maker Arthur Crowther, Fred was famed for his dogged determination and ability in the sprint which won the hearts of cycling enthusiasts throughout Europe.